The Carden Chronicles

A New Nightmare Scenario

noreply@blogger.com (Matt Carden) — Mon, 17 Nov 2008 06:30:00 +0000

According to reports Senator McCain will be meeting with Former Senator Obama (soon to be, but NOT YET President-Elect) today, November 17, 2008 about cooperation.

Rumor has it that Former Senator Obama may offer Senator McCain the post of Secretary of Defense. The idea of a Republican SecDef, with a Democratic President is not that far-fetched- after all, Sec. McNamara was a Republican.

However, this appointment would be an INCREDIBLE VICTORY for the Democrats, and a NIGHTMARE for the GOP.

If Senator McCain leaves the Senate, his seat will be fill by appointment by the DEMOCRAT Governor of Arizona. This would, as things now appear to be standing, put the Democrats at, or over the 60 seat Super Majority.

It appears that Stevens' seat is gone. The "recount" in Minnesota is a joke and appears to be headed for a Franken win-- especially if they keep finding "missing" ballots. The GOP could hold 41 seats if Saxby Chamblis wins in Georgia.

However, if Senator McCain leaves the Senate-- the Democrats have total control...

By the way-- is this Obama plagiarizing the "Seventh Season of West Wing"-- the "Maverick Republican Senator" gets appointed to the "First Minority President's cabinet."

Later today I am flying to Minneapolis-- anyone want to bet whether I am asked to fill out a Democratic Absentee Ballot for Franken when I land????

Own A Gun? Don't Apply to Work for Obama

noreply@blogger.com (Matt Carden) — Sun, 16 Nov 2008 07:50:00 +0000

The President-Elect and the Former Clintonista's and Kool-Aid Drinkers who are in his transition team, are making it clear that restricting gun ownership will be a big part of the agenda.

The new administration's "vetting" questionnaire, asks about gun ownership. Question 59- "Do you or any members of your immediate family own a gun? If so, provide complete ownership and registration information. Has the registration ever lapsed? Please describe how and by whom it is used and whether it has been the cause of any personal injuries or property damage."

Either the President-Elect does not want gun-owners in his administration, or more likely, he wants to make sure there are as few as possible, and that none have ever been involved in a self-defense situation that those of us on the "evil right" could point to.

He does not ask about violation of firearms laws. He asks about ownership. He asks about registration (which is only required in five states). He asks about registration lapsing (you only have to renew a registration in New York and a couple of it's surrounding counties).

He also asks how, and by whom it is used. Why would this matter? Is this so that he can say, "No one in my administration has a concealed carry permit" when he and his liberal Congress attempt to pass a federal ban on Concealed Carry, or pass a federal ban on "shall issue" laws.

His website (this link is provided as proof of source material only. I personally discourage people from reading lies and unconstitutional promises) makes it clear that he wants to create a "permanent" "assault weapon's ban" -- in other words, a permanent ban on all firearms that are not single shot.

His website states he wishes to make sure all gun's are child-proof-- In other words, he wants to create legislation so restrictive as to eliminate all guns currently owned by law-abiding citizens in the United States.

The President-Elect LIED out-right on his website, by saying the Tiahart amendment keeps law-enforcement from accessing gun-trace information. The Tiahart amendment actually RESTRICTS trace information to ONLY law-enforcement for bona-fide investigations, rather than allowing anyone and everyone from accessing the database. The President-Elect states he will repeal the Tiahart amendment.

Bottom-line- this President-Elect is the most Anti-Gun liberal we have ever elected. With the liberal majority in the House and a possible super-majority in the Senate, soon there may be nothing to stop him.

Our only hope, is to Save Saxby Chamblis and prevent the liberal super-majority in the Senate.

Attacking Ammunition

noreply@blogger.com (Matt Carden) — Sat, 08 Nov 2008 04:17:00 +0000

Since The Court has said gun ownership is a RIGHT, the Left has decided to go after our ammunition.

In the last couple of days, a report has surface from the CDC and North Dakota Department of Health regarding eating wild game that was shot with lead projectiles. North Dakota has issued cautions on wild game, but the state of Wyoming said they find nothing significant in the study.

Some in the MSM(and on left-wing anti-gun sites which I have a policy that I will not link to) are claiming that the report says that eating game causes increase lead in the blood.

The National Shooting Sports Foundation disagrees with what the MSM is saying. This is from their press release on this study:

A Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) study on human lead levels of hunters in North Dakota has confirmed what hunters throughout the world have known for hundreds of years, that consuming game harvested with traditional ammunition poses absolutely no health risk to people, including children, and that the call to ban lead ammunition was and remains a scare tactic being pushed by anti-hunting groups to forward their political agenda.

Fortunately, the facts seem to get in the way of what the MSM and Anti-gun crowd would like us to believe. The MSM and Left are playing with numbers to make the numbers show what they want.

The report states that a lead level (Pb) higher than 10.0 micrograms/deciliter is not healthy. The geometric mean lead level of the entire population of the US is 1.67.

According to this study the geometric mean Pb (lead) in micrograms/deciliter for those adults who consumed venison was 1.27. HOWEVER, the Pb for those who lived in houses built before 1977 was 1.31, house before 1946 was 1.39. Therefore, can't we say that living in a house built before 1977 is a greater risk for increase Serum Pb than eating game?

Further, the Pb of those who only had a High School Education was 1.57 and High School drop-outs (those who did NOT have education higher than high-school) was 1.95!!! So, can we conclude that College prevents elevated Pb in the Blood? Post hoc ergo propter hoc.

The study also appears to show that those who had been eating venison for 10 years or more, had lower Pb levels than those eating for only a year or less (-0.114 decrease from those who had only eaten venison for one year) I wonder how that works? The more venison you eat, the lower your Pb levels are?

It does not appear that his study has been peer reviewed, and it certainly seems as though Wyoming is right, there is nothing significant related to eating of game. It IS likely that other factors are causing the increases that are seen and eating wild game is just coincidental. It should be noted that there was ONE person in the study with lead levels at about 9.86, which is about 9 times higher than the group mean. In other words, this one person could certainly affect the study.

Just because one thing follows another, it does necessarily mean that the one thing is caused by the other. The author of the study seems to have forgotten that.

Click HERE for the full text of the report.

Save Saxby!!!

noreply@blogger.com (Matt Carden) — Fri, 07 Nov 2008 05:55:00 +0000

CLICK HERE TO DONATE TO SEN. SAXBY CHAMBLISS, REPUBLICAN FROM GEORGIA WHO FACES A RUN OFF ON DEC. 2

It appears that Senator Saxby Chambliss, Republican from the State of Georgia will be heading to a run-off election because he has not gotten a majority (50% +1) of votes in his re-election bid.

This is a seat that Republicans MUST save.
Currently the Senate make up is 57 Democrat (or Democratic Caucus) and 40 Republican with 3 seats, including Chambliss', outstanding. The three seats are Sen. Stevens of Alaska, who was recently convicted of corruption (although he plans to appeal), Sen. Coleman of Minnesota, who is barely ahead of Al Franken and headed for a recount, and Sen. Chambliss.

In Alaska, they are still counting, and victory is not certain. In Minnesota, the recount could go either way. In both these situations, there is nothing that anyone can do. The votes have been cast.

But Georgia is another story. This run-off elections gives us a last chance to STOP a Democrat Super-Majority. Currently, the ONLY thing that can be done to stop Democrat extreme leftist laws, is a Republican filibuster. However, if the Democrats gain 60 seats, the game is up. There will be NOTHING that anyone can do to stop them.

I challenge ALL my readers and Fellow Bloggers to contribute just $10 to the Chambliss Campaign. That is a small amount-- less than what you would pay at Starbucks for two venti mocha's and a danish! Please remember that ANY size contribution will help!

The Democrats are going to pull out all stops. The "Obama Machine," Unions and every liberal special interest group will be doing everything possible to defeat Sen. Chambliss. The country just went from 470 Congressional races to 1. The Democrats will not just ignore this race. This may be the last chance we have to save our Republic from a leftist onslaught.

Save Saxby!!!

UPDATE: Hot Air gives another reason why Saving Saxby may be our only hope!

South Park and My First Good Laugh Post Election

noreply@blogger.com (Matt Carden) — Fri, 07 Nov 2008 05:49:00 +0000

Wednesday, November 5, Comedy Central aired the South Park episode, "About Last Night..." It is probably the best South Park of this season. It was hilarious, and gave me my first laugh since election night. It was definately topical, and definately timely.

I especially enjoyed the Obama supports getting carried away. Keep in mind that the creators of South Park are equal opportunity offenders. However, the show definately has a right-wing slant.

This episode is a must see. Below is a short clip from the show. The full episode can be watched here

Warning: Some Language May be Offensive

First Moves by President-Elect

noreply@blogger.com (Matt Carden) — Thu, 06 Nov 2008 04:07:00 +0000

President-elect Obama tapped Rep. Rahm Emanuel to serve as his White House Chief of Staff today. Rep. Emanuel also served under President Clinton.

Rep. Emanuel is certainly a "die-hard" partisan and is a hard-core liberal based on his voting record.

We will just have to wait and see if President-Elect Obama's other choices are as partisan, or if he is really going to reach across the aisle like he has said he would.

Wall Street did react today, though, to the election, and the reaction was not good. The drop was the largest post election drop in history. Is "the Street" betting on economic failure by the new President? Are they anticipating future economic disasters?

The good news is that gas prices are down. But, back in March, the Iranian government said that oil prices would be down in advance of the US Elections.

I guess we will just have to wait to see what tomorrow brings.

What Now?

noreply@blogger.com (Matt Carden) — Wed, 05 Nov 2008 04:08:00 +0000

So the results are in. It is 10:01 CST and California has just been called for Sen. Obama, making him the next President-Elect of the United States. Next month, the Electoral College will vote, and the House will validate the results, making Sen. Obama the President-Elect. On January 20, 2009, Sen. Obama will become the 44th President of the United States.

I did not vote for Senator Obama. I do not believe in his political views. I believe he is too liberal. I believe his views border on socialism. I do not believe he is remotely qualified to be President of the United States. However, the electorate has spoken. Perhaps we can put away the thinking that this is a racist country.

Now the question becomes what now for the Republican Party?

It is time for the Republican Party to reflect on who we are, where we have come from and where we must go from here.

It was a Republican President who signed the Emancipation Proclamation. It was a Republican Congress that passed the "Freedman's Bureau" and the first protections for African Americans. It was a Republican President that broke the back of the original "klan." It was a Republican President who was the first President to ask an African American to dinner in the White House. It was a Republican President who started the Conservation movement. It was a Republican President who pushed through legislation that guaranteed clean water and safe food. It was a Republican President who taught us that it was o.k. to be a patriot and wave the Red, White and Blue and that America is the "Shining City on a Hill". It was a Republican President who made the final, great stand against the Soviets, and told them to "tear down this wall." It was a Republican President who told us from ground zero in New York, "I hear you... and the people that tore these buildings down are going to hear all of us soon."

But, these things are our past. Now we must look to our future and where we must go.

We have lost our way as a party, and in losing our way, we have lost not only the White House, but we have lost additional seats in the House and the Senate. We must somehow find our way again. We must return to being the party of responsible reform. We must return to being the party of small government. We must return to being the party of fiscal responsibility.

For now, though, the ball is in the court of the Democrats. The Democrats have control, in the House, the Senate and the White House. They can no longer blame the Republican Party for their failures. Now we will see who and what they really are.

God save the President of the United States. God save the United States of America.

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More Military Moves By Iran

noreply@blogger.com (Matt Carden) — Mon, 15 Sep 2008 02:30:00 +0000

Iran has decided to perform a bit of a "show of force" starting today (Monday in Iran). They have announced they are going to be running joint military exercises, maneuvers and performing "domestic" weapons testing. The location of the maneuvers was not announced.

Iran also stated their navy has developed new submarine technology to prevent their subs from being picked up on "radar" (personally I thought sonar was the bigger concern).

Iran stated that their air forces and revolutionary guard will be involved in the maneuvers. From PressTV.ir (Iranian Media)-

The Islamic Republic Air Force will test Iran's domestic-made warfare in a joint military exercise with the IRGC, the Defense Ministry says.
The joint aerial maneuver will be held on Monday and is aimed at boosting Iran's defensive capabilities and operational tactics, Iran's Defense Minister Brigadier General Mostafa Mohammad-Najjar said.
The military exercise, which involves The Islamic Republic of Iran Air Force (IRIAF) and the Islamic Revolution Guards Corps (IRGC), comes in the wake of escalating US and Israeli threats to strike the country's nuclear facilities...
...Tehran has warned that Israel and 32 US bases in the region will be targeted should the country come under attack. (Emphasis Added)

This is right along with my earlier statement--1+1=3. Something is not adding up in Iran.

Houston: Help is On the Way

noreply@blogger.com (Matt Carden) — Mon, 15 Sep 2008 01:38:00 +0000

I was out this afternoon doing some shopping. While crossing over I-35, I noticed a convoy of utility trucks headed south-bound. All total there were 20 to 30 trucks in this convoy. I pulled to the side of the road and got a quick photo with my cell phone. Unfortunately, I could not get a picture of all of them without causing a major traffic issue.

Now, we have not had any type of event in the Kansas City Metro that would necessitate that large of a convoy of utility vehicles heading south on I-35. Therefore, the only logical conclusion is they are headed to Texas.

Houston, help is on the way!

Readers, please remember to make a donation if you are able to the American Red Cross or your favorite relief organization. A link to the Red Cross is at the top of this page.

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Russia: I Love the 70's (or 80's)

noreply@blogger.com (Matt Carden) — Sun, 14 Sep 2008 15:42:00 +0000

Russia has made some interesting moves lately, making me wonder personally if they are trying to resurrect some of the "good ole' days" of the Soviet Union.

Several months ago, Russian bombers decided to "play games" with US Forces, including "playing chicken" with the USS Nimitz- something that was a bit unusual at the time.

Last week, Russia decided to send Tu-160 strategic bombers into Venezuela. Then they ran exercises with those bombers, and Russian naval assets in the Caribbean. (Is it just me or does the Tu-160 look almost exactly like a B-1B, down to the four engines and sweepable wings? -- I wonder if they "borrowed" the plans. Pictures Below.)

Russia has struck a deal with Syria to renovate and re-equip a Syrian port for use by the Russian Navy. The port is in Tartus, Syria. From the DEBKAfile:

Russian naval contingent, led by the aircraft carrier Admiral Kuznetsov, left Murmansk on the Barents Sea Aug. 18 to dock at the Syrian Mediterranean port of Tartus Saturday, Aug. 23. It includes the Russian Navy’s biggest missile cruiser Moskva and at least four nuclear missile submarines.

Israel is expressing "concern" about Russian sales of arms to Iran.

Replace the word Russia, with "Soviet Union" and this reads like something from the 1970's or 80's.

US Selling Bunker Busters to Israel

noreply@blogger.com (Matt Carden) — Sun, 14 Sep 2008 14:53:00 +0000

The Department of Defense announced that the US will be selling "Bunker Buster" bombs to the Israeli Air Force. The Pentagon will be selling Israel 1000 of the "Guided Bomb Unit-39" (GBU-39) for a total of $77 million. The weapons are GPS guided. According to the report, the bombs can penetrate over 1.8 meters of concrete with an accuracy of 5-8 meters.

The bombs each way about 250 pounds and can be carried by smaller aircraft, such as the F-16 or F-15. The light weight of the bombs allows for longer range missions. The bomb is built by Boeing, who refers to it as a "Small Diameter Bomb" (SDB).

The US will also be upgrading Israel's "Patriot" systems and provide additional LAW rockets. Now the DOD just needs to include some F-22 Raptors to complete the package!

Even though the US is providing precision guided bunker busting bombs, I am sure Israel was likely told to only use them for "practice."

The video below is a demo of the GBU-39.

Updated Information from Houston

noreply@blogger.com (Matt Carden) — Sat, 13 Sep 2008 23:39:00 +0000

UPDATE: I have not yet heard from Mark in Houston, but with the power down, it may be a while until I hear anything. John Little appears to have come out the storm ok, but has some damage to his home.

I received this from Mark in Houston:

I was just looking at the track and it looks like it is heading straight for my house! I still don’t think the winds will be any worse here so far inland, than it was for Rita three years ago. However, it does appear that the storm surge, like a tsunami, will inundate our low-lying coastal areas. Predicting a 20 foot surge for Galveston island, which would completely cover the island. Homeland security actually issued a warning to the people left on the island of “certain death” if they stayed. Pretty much says it all.
NASA is in the Friendswood / Clear Lake area here and is also in a low lying area and is threatened as well. Apparently, they have protected all of their buildings and will continue operation during the storm and don’t expect much damage from wind or water. It will be hitting late tonight and blow until midday tomorrow.
Connectivity permitting, I will update you then

Also- John Little is Live Blogging the Storm from Houston- His site is http://www.blogsofwar.com/

Moves by Iran: 1+1=3

noreply@blogger.com (Matt Carden) — Sat, 13 Sep 2008 23:00:00 +0000

It appears that Iran has been making unusual purchases of monkeys, enough so that the "dealers," who are actually dealing in an endangered breed and are in violation of international law, are concerned.

Iran is purchasing the monkeys in the hundreds, and are purchasing a size that is apparently not able to be used for vaccine research as they claim. The purchases are being made by the Razi Vaccine and Serum Research Institute. Opposition groups in the past have claimed in the past that this was actually a biological weapons facility. Iran is going so far as to send scientists to the countries in Africa to review the shipments before accepting them. The monkeys are being sold for £60 each. From Iran Focus News:

Manji said scientists at the Razi Vaccine and Serum Research Institute in Iran had bought 215 vevet monkeys from him this year but he had become suspicious about their true motive, athough he was still trading with them. They had “spent a lot of money” on getting the monkeys, even sending over scientists to check on each consignment.

“Iran is very secretive,” said Manji, who has been exporting monkeys for 22 years. “They said it [the monkeys] was for ‘our country’, for vaccine. [They said] ‘We don’t buy vaccine from anywhere; we prepare our own vaccine’.

“But I think they use it for something else. You know why? Because they don’t go on kilos. Iran wants [monkeys weighing] 1.5kg to 2.5kg, [but] 1.5kg for vaccine is not possible.”

The other "interesting" news out of Iran is the announcement from their space agency that they are planning to put a man into orbit (and presumably bring him back alive). While this may be a project to boost the moral of the country and purely for scientific purposes, it is also a statement of military capability. Placing an object into a precise orbit, especially an object large enough to carry a man, also means that you can deliver a warhead to a precise target, ANYWHERE on the planet.

Finally, T. Boone Pickens has been saying on his commercials that Iran is converting it's cars to natural gas, so that it can sell more oil on the world market. However, production and sales of oil is from Iran is controlled by OPEC. Perhaps they are wanting to keep it in the ground to extend their ability to sell in the future.

But it is also possible that they are conserving oil for military use. You do not convert your military vehicles to natural gas. It is more difficult to transport than oil, and if your military moves into another country, you can use the oil they have or gas they have in your military vehicles- living off the land- so to speak. You can not do this as easily with natural gas.

So, Iran is importing endangered monkeys for "vaccine" research, they are running a "peaceful and scientific" space program, and they are conserving oil, "to make sure the supplies are" available for future generations."

1+1=3

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IKE: Off Shore

noreply@blogger.com (Matt Carden) — Fri, 12 Sep 2008 21:43:00 +0000

Hurricane Ike is starting to affect the Texas coast. Landfall is expected tonight at about 11 pm CDT-- Which coincides with high tide. Aparently they are expecting a surge of more than 25 feet, with the seawall being only 17 feet. This is accordingto the live repors that are showing on Fox News right now.

The other big news from this storm so far is the fate of the M.V. Antalina. The Antalian is a 584 foot freighter who lost propulsion in the Gulf in the path of Ike. The Coast Guard attempted a rescue but was turned back. There are 22 souls aboard. They will be riding out the storm on board.

UAV Missile Strike in Pakistan

noreply@blogger.com (Matt Carden) — Fri, 12 Sep 2008 06:16:00 +0000

An unmanned US Drone fired multiple missiles at a village in northwestern Pakistan near the town of Miran Shah. According to reports, the house of an Al Badr Mujahideen commander Shahdam was targeted in the attack. This area is a stronghold and called safe haven for Al-Qaida and the Taliban. Some reports are saying at least 10 were kill, others are saying as many as a dozen were killed, and still others are saying eight. News reporting of the attack started at about 12:30 AM CDT or what would be about 10:30 AM in Pakistan.

According to Agence France, the attack was before dawn.

This attack is part of a recent upsurge of attacks across the Pakistani border. President Bush is said to have recently authorized the attacks. It has been suggested that Bin Laden or Ayman al-Zawahri may be hiding in the area of northwestern Pakistan. This area is an al Qaeda stronghold and is largely ungoverned or ruled by tribal war-lords. This area, up until the alleged new orders from President Bush, would have been "out of bounds" for US military forces because it is in Pakistan.

The strike used an unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV), probably a Predator and probably firing Hellfire missiles. This would indicate that there was a specific target, the target was watched for some time (the UAV's are not fast, generally) and then taken out with intent-- this was not a cruise missile that went astray.

So-- THEORETICALLY (but also logically) -- the "target" was followed to the house by the UAV or was identified entering the house- possibly before nightfall. Operators of the UAV ID'd the target. The ID was sent up the chain of command to National Command Authority (NCA). Authorization was probably not immediate-- There was probably some discussion of collateral damage. Iran is reporting women and children were killed. This is also being reported in India. Once NCA was 100% sure of who they had AND that it was a target worth a several million dollar Hellfire Missile AND that the target was important enough that collateral damage would not matter, they likely gave the order to take out the target before dawn-- before the target would wake up and leave the house.

This is all just conjecture but it is logical. The US would NOT risk strike on a house that MAY have children in it for "Ackmed the Terrorist." The US WOULD however risk the collateral damage and take out a house, rather than wait for the guy to leave and try to hit him on the move, for someone very important.

Now we just have to see who was killed.

Tale of Two Bills: Enforcing the Second Amendment or The Fox Guarding the Chicken Coop

noreply@blogger.com (Matt Carden) — Thu, 11 Sep 2008 22:02:00 +0000

Two bills will be coming to the floor of the House within the next few weeks. HR 6691- The Second Amendment Enforcement Act and HR 6842- The National Capital Security and Safety Act.

While both bills were introduced by Democrats in the House, and both bills "allege" that they are intended to enforce The Court's ruling from Heller, they are as different as night and day.

The first bill, HR 6691- The Second Amendment Enforcement Act, was introduced by Rep Travis Childers (D-MS) and has 51 co-sponsors. The bill, based on my reading, is correctly named.

This bill does several things. First and foremost, it removes from the Mayor and Council of DC the ability to make gun laws. From the bill:

The District of Columbia shall not have authority to enact laws or regulations that discourage or eliminate the private ownership or use of firearms

The bill also repeals the ban on semi-automatics, it repeals the registration requirement, it repeals the ban on Handgun Ammunition, it repeals all criminal penalties for carrying a gun in your own home, it restores the right to self defense, and authorizes DC residents to purchase firearms in Maryland or Virginia.

From The Washington Post:

It would abolish the city's gun registration requirements and allow residents to own semiautomatic pistols and rifles. It also would permit them to buy guns in Virginia and Maryland and would scrap a regulation that firearms in homes be kept unloaded and safeguarded except in cases of imminent danger.

This, I believe is what the Court intended with the Heller decision.

The second bill, HR 6842- The National Capital Security and Safety Act, is a weak attempt to pay lip service to Heller, but leaves the fox guarding the chicken coop. It was introduced by Delegate (not Congresswoman) Eleanor Holmes Norton (D-D.C.) and is co-sponsored by Congressman Henry Waxman (D-CA) (need I really say more?).

The bill gives D.C. 180 days (from passage of the bill, in theory) to comply with Heller. It also leaves the Mayor and Council of DC in charge of making any and all regulations regarding firearms in D.C. To date, the D.C. council has done virtually NOTHING with regard to the requirements of Heller. In fact, their "interpretation" of Heller seems to be that they need to make no changes.

DC is, of course, in favor of the second bill, HR 6842, and against HR 6691. They are attempting to paint the picture that if HR 6691 becomes law, citizens would be able to walk the streets of the capital with .50 caliber sniper rifles and have machine guns on their persons.

D.C. Police Chief Cathy L. Lanier told Congress, "Imagine how difficult it will be for law enforcement to safeguard the public, not to mention the new president at the inaugural parade, if carrying semiautomatic rifles were to suddenly become legal in Washington."

Strange, ~~Satan~~President Bush, allegedly the most hated man in America, has been to the Kansas City area several times, and there has been no difficulty to protect him here and yet the area allows the carry of firearms.

The truth is that they hate the Second Amendment, and hate the people who seek to exercise their rights under the Second Amendment.

HR 6691 The Second Amendment Enforcement Act is a law that MUST be passed. Although this legislation only directly affects the citizens of D.C., it is sends an important message. The first being that the Supreme Court ruling in Heller actually had meaning and that it cannot be disregarded. Second, the legislation keeps the people who would seek to destroy the Second Amendment from continuing to write laws that keep Americans from their Constitutional Rights.
Although HR-6691 is expected to pass, everyone who believes in the Second Amendment should call or write their Congressman to ask for their vote. The NRA is backing this bill.

There is some concern that the bill will not have time to make it through the Senate before end of session. This is probably good for Senators Obama and Biden; they will not need to actually make a stand before the election. Neither of them supported the Individual Right to Bear Arms. But then again, with Sen. Obama's record, he would probably just vote "present" anyway.

9-11 Outrage from Syria

noreply@blogger.com (Matt Carden) — Thu, 11 Sep 2008 22:01:00 +0000

I thought the 9-11 conspiracy theorist were bad. I thought the comments by Rosie O'Donnell were horrible. But this borders on outrageous.

A former Information Minister of the ~~Terrorists~~ Government of Syria has issued a statement BLAMING the United States for the attacks on 9/11. This reads like something from a "nut-job" website. From the Jerusalem Post:

According to Mahdi Dakhlallah, in a piece that appeared Wednesday, the intelligence agencies were behind the September 11, 2001 attacks to provide a pretext for a preplanned US plan to invade Iraq and Afghanistan.

"These plans were ready and prepared [in advance] - and all that was needed was to find a pretext to begin their immediate implementation," wrote Dakhlallah, in a piece of which excerpts were translated by MEMRI, the Middle East Media Research Institute.
...
"What is important, always, is the use of the events in order to carry out a strategy planned in advance - which raises the possibility that the injured party itself carried out the deed, especially if the matter concerns a country with great strategic interests such as the US."

I guess it's no wonder that websites that speak the truth, like our Friends over at The Jawa Report have been banned in places like Syria.

My hope and prayer is that someday The Carden Chronicles will also be banned by Syria, North Korea, Iran and with luck the People's Republic of China. Then I know I will be doing a good job.

Taliban Statement (i.e. Load of S#!+)

noreply@blogger.com (Matt Carden) — Thu, 11 Sep 2008 19:01:00 +0000

UPDATE: Today, a former Minister of Information of the ~~Terrorist~~Government of Syria accused the US of planning and conducting the 9-11 attacks. More here.

So, the Taliban decided to issue a statement today, saying how close to victory they are:

"Doesn't America stand at the edge of historical defeat in Afghanistan? Don't the NATO forces get defeated by Mujahideen at every step?" Taliban said in a statement released to mark the September 11, 2001 attacks on the United States.

"Afghans have never surrendered to foreign interference and have always united against the infidel invasions and have defeated the invaders unitedly," it added.

Yeah, right- In your dreams-

The Taliban leaves out the fact that another 100 of them were killed today on the border with Pakistan.

Perhaps it is time to remind folks of what the situation REALLY is:

Video posted at The Jawa Report.

Ike Cometh

noreply@blogger.com (Matt Carden) — Thu, 11 Sep 2008 17:51:00 +0000

While it is appropriate today to spend as much time as possible in reflection and thoughts on what happened seven years ago over Shanksville, PA, at the Pentagon and in New York City, it is also important to note a disaster pending in the Gulf of Mexico. Ike is on the way.

I emailed a colleague from work who lives in Houston. He is far enough inland that he is staying put. This will be his sixth hurricane. I also have an uncle who lives in Houston. I am waiting for a call from my mom to see if she has heard anything.

Meteorologist Anthony Watts is keeping the track up on his site. I am anticipating a good scientific discussion at his site regarding Ike- his site is one of the best there is on all things weather related.

Another place I am monitoring is Blogs of War. John Little, the author, lives near downtown Houston. John is reporting some gas stations being out of fuel . He also reports overflowing parking lots at the local Kroger.

I took another quick tour of Houston’s Midtown and the stores and gas stations are nuts. The one above, which I said two hours ago was mobbed and running low, is now completely out of gas.

Kroger’s on West Gray, just down the street from me, was mobbed - completely. The huge parking lot was overflowing on to Gray and other nearby streets. As bad as it is now I expect it to be far worse this evening when even more people leave work and start their preparations far later than they should have.

I will continue to update as I find out any more information from friends and family in the Houston area.

Track Palin NOT Involved in Vandalism Incident

noreply@blogger.com (Matt Carden) — Thu, 11 Sep 2008 10:49:00 +0000

The MSM and left seem determined to do anything to make Gov Palin look bad, including going after her kids. "Rumor" has been floating around that Track Palin, Gov. Palin's son who is being deployed today with the US Army, was involved in some sort of "vandalism" some 3 years ago involving air being let out of school bus tires and block heaters being unplugged in the winter --which I understand can be bad in Alaska.

The New York Daily News has published an article today stating that the rumors are false.

"Despite snowballing reports and rumors, Sarah Palin's eldest son, Track, was not part of the gang of four teenagers who criminally vandalized 44 Alaska school buses in 2005, a key culprit told The News.

"Track wasn't with me. Track had nothing to do with it," participant Deryck Harris, 20, said Wednesday in an exclusive interview.

Citing an anonymous judicial source, the Anchorage radio station 1080 KUDO was the first to report last week that Track Palin was the unidentified 16-year-old delinquent who not only trashed the buses but also swiped the bottle of alcohol that fueled the teen rampage.
The National Enquirer will report his "involvement" in the "notorious" attack in its issue out Thursday.

"I was friends with him. We hung out. But he wasn't there," Harris said, describing the incident as a senior prank gone awry. "It was my high school mistake. It was a really bad choice. I've paid my restitution."

First, Track Palin is NOT running for Vice President of the United States.

Second, for those that will jump up and say, "well it reflects how good of a parent..." BS!!!! At 16 or 17 years old, teenagers have "free-will." THEY tend to make decisions for themselves DESPITE what their parents say or do. In fact, they most often do the OPPOSITE of what the parents say. You can be the greatest parent in the world, and your kid may still make a mistake.

Third, and perhaps the most important... HE DIDN'T DO IT.

Matt Damon on Gov Palin: Why Care What He Thinks?

noreply@blogger.com (Matt Carden) — Thu, 11 Sep 2008 07:34:00 +0000

For some reason, the MSM believes that it is important that we, the little people hear the opinions of "the Important People" from Hollywood.

Therefore, we have been blessed with the wisdom of Matt Damon. Damon apparently has been studying up for his insurance agent license, because he quotes actuarial tables and states that there is a good chance that Sen. McCain would die before the end of a term.

He also goes off on some bizarre tangent asking if Gov. Palin believes that dinosaurs walked the earth 4000 years ago. Where in the WORLD did that come from? Yes, I understand that there are some who believe in taking every word of the Bible quite literally, and they believe that the earth is only 6000 years old. But, that is 6000 years, not 4000. Get your facts straight Damon...

Frankly, I don't think that Gov Palin believes anything close to this. But, Damon IS an Actor (or so they tell me). So he MUST know what is best.

Of course, one should keep in mind the character, Janeane Garofalo's statements to the Film Actors Guild-- "As actors, it is our responsibility to read the newspapers and then say what we read on television like it's our own opinion." (Team America World Police).

We Must Never Forget- September 11, 2001

noreply@blogger.com (Matt Carden) — Thu, 11 Sep 2008 05:38:00 +0000

The phone rang shortly after 7:50 AM CDT. My last day at work had been not too long before. I had been working for a firm with offices in New York and Tokyo, and my position was eliminated in August. So, at the end of August I had flown from Tokyo to New York City and cleaned out my office and came back to Overland Park. My severance check had been sizable, I had no meetings scheduled that morning and I was planning on sleeping in. My wife had taken the kids to school and was on the way to work herself.

"Turn on the TV, they just said on the radio that a plane crahed into the World Trade Center." I hung up the phone and reached for the remote. We, the family and I, had just been to the World Trade Center less than 6 months before. We had been planning on a relocation to the NYC area for my job, and the kids had all come out and we had done the tourist things. Actually, the WTC stop was just a spur of the moment idea. We had been out at Liberty Island and were walking north from Battery Park, when we passed the towers. One of the kids complained about being hungry, and someone suggested that we visit the towers and eat there. They were close, it was Sunday afternoon and it seemed like a good idea.

I turned on one of the cable news networks. Smoke was showing from WTC 1. I remember thinking that Newark was close, and it must have been a small plane either heading in or out of Newark that had some issue. Then I saw a close up and knew this wasn't a small plane. Still, I wondered if there had been some malfunction in an ILS system or Flight Management System that caused the crash.

At 8:03 CDT, I saw the second plane (Flight 175) flying too low and too fast on the TV Screen. For a slit second, I wondered what kind of computer malfunction could cause two accidents. Then I saw it hit.

I picked up my phone. I called my dad in Phoenix. I remember saying, "Turn on the TV… I think we are at war."

It has been seven years since that morning. Seven years of wins and losses in a war that may last for years to come. Today is a day to stop and remember. Remember where we were that morning. Remember what we thought. Remember those that we lost.

As we remember we must also fill ourselves with resolve. Terrorists started this that morning; Evil attacked us- but we MUST finish it- no matter what it takes. We must continue the fight.

We must always remember. We must NEVER Forget.

(Photos taken by Matt Carden, March 2001 from NY Harbor and from the Top of WTC2)

Obama on O'Reilly - Energy

noreply@blogger.com (Matt Carden) — Thu, 11 Sep 2008 01:07:00 +0000

Again, this was another night of softball on O'Reilly, with regard to Energy policy this time.

We did find out that Sen. Obama has met with T. Boone Pickens. Ok, so I think that Mr. Picken's ideas are interesting, and I particularly like his latest statement- "Drill, drill, drill" AND have alternative sources for energy.

Where O'Reilly failed tonight, was he allowed Sen. Obama to get away with the "protect ANWR for future generations" and "that is a beautiful area" lines. The fact is that yes, technically the area of the North Slope where new oil has been discovered crosses into ANWR. HOWEVER the area where they are talking of drilling is fairly desolate (see picture). There is virtually nothing there.

The best part of the O'Reilly show was Dennis Miller's comments. In regard to Gov. Palin getting under Obama's skin Miller said:

"Sarah Palin doesn't exists if he [Obama] picks Hillary Clinton. He's let her in and now you can tell She is thunder around inside his head, he doesn't know whether to defecate or wind his watch at this point."

It took me a bit to stop laughing.

Obama Plagiarism

noreply@blogger.com (Matt Carden) — Wed, 10 Sep 2008 12:11:00 +0000

Stop the ACLU brought to our attention a bit of an issue about Obama's lipstick comment yesterday. Here is the transcript from Obama yesterday:

John McCain says he’s about change too. Exce- and and so I guess his whole angle is - watch out, George Bush - except for economic policy, healthcare policy, tax policy, education policy, foreign policy, and Karl-Rove-style politics, we’re really gonna shake things up in Washington.

That’s not change.

That’s that’s just callin’ sumpin’ the same thing somethin’ different.

But you know, you can’t, you know, you you can put, ah, lipstick on a pig, it’s still a pig.

Here is a political cartoon from Tom Toles from September 5--BEFORE Obama's comments:

Plagiarism?

Obama on O'Reilly - Obama's Associations

noreply@blogger.com (Matt Carden) — Wed, 10 Sep 2008 00:04:00 +0000

The interview was pure "soft-ball," which is suprising from O'Reilly. O'Reilly let Sen. Obama off the hook with "I know thousands of people" and allowing Sen. Obama to make the assertion that all of Sen. Obama's association are "tangental."

Sen. Obama has still not explained some of his more "questionable" associations. Sen. Obama STILL maintains that during his ENTIRE association with Rev. Wright, Wright NEVER said anything "offensive."

Further, Sen. Obama maintained that his relationship with Ayers was only about education. Curious that Sen. & Mrs. Obama are part training left wing activists at a left wing activist Boot Camp, including training on how to protest, and Ayers definately has a background in that area. Of course, ~~The Messiah~~ Sen. Obama says there is absolutely nothing to his relationship with Ayers, so of course, we should just let the whole thing go.